Chelsea senior players demand Zola, Clarke return from West Ham

The London Evening Standard says all efforts to prise the pair away from the fantastic job they have done at Upton Park will be fiercely resisted by West Ham's board and Zola is also known to be keen to see through the job he started last September.

But the pull of Chelsea, where Zola spent seven years and was voted the greatest player in the club's history by supporters in 2003, will be enormous.

The lure of a return to the Bridge will also be huge for Clarke, who only left Chelsea in September after being sidelined by Luiz Felipe Scolari's arrival.